New Things
We don't like new things at my house.
Old things that are familiar are much more comfortable, even if they have certain eccentricities and idiosyncrasies. Once you get used to them and figure out the tricks to make them work, you know where you are and what to expect. This applies to things like clothes, especially shoes, computers, various kinds of switches, pots and pans, and most of all to household appliances.
The washing machine that we had for the past fifteen years was a comfortable old thing. It had certain idiosyncrasies, and over the course of fifteen years of constant use it occasionally needed more serious attention. Like when it overflowed because the filter was blocked and the neighbor came up to tell us that water was dripping into the garage, because we had the bathroom door closed. After that we never closed the door completely when the washing machine was running, and the wall eventually dried out too. Then there was the time that the temperature regulator went out and I ended up boiling the boys snowsuits, which they found quite interesting. Many stray objects have been removed from that washing machine, which obviously do not belong in a washing machine, but on the whole it has been a relatively cooperative and hard-working member of this household all these years since we used to wash many loads of diapers.
The day before Patrick came home, we finally realized that the washing machine has been leaking for some time, and when we figured out that it wasn't a problem we could easily fix ourselves, we called the repairman. The repairman came early that Monday morning and started checking what needed to be repaired and how much it would cost. Before he finished that list it was clear that we would need a new washing machine. Patrick came home Monday night, the repairman brought the new washing machine Tuesday morning.
I took an instant dislike to the new washing machine. It had too many superfluous lights and an elaborate display of trivial information on a poisonously green lighted panel. And a very flimsy handle for the soap drawer. This washing machine was clearly not going to be with us for the next fifteen years.
It didn't even last a week. It was loud to start with, but it just got louder and louder when it went into the spin cycle, until it sounded like it was about to explode. We unanimously agreed that this could not be considered normal behavior, even on the part of a new washing machine, so we called the repairman again. The repairman discovered that the cement block inside it to stabilize the drum had come loose and was just being tossed around inside the metal case when the drum turned. The repairman wasn't left much opportunity to think about attempting to repair that, since a portion of the cement block had already been pulverized into cement dust on the floor underneath the washing machine.
So the repairman left again and came back the next day with another new washing machine. It looks exactly the same, and I still don't like it, but at least it has lasted longer than a week and did a reasonable job washing sweaters as well as the rest of the laundry. We'll see.
And then yesterday Peter came home with a new coffee machine to replace the one that broke months ago ...
Old things that are familiar are much more comfortable, even if they have certain eccentricities and idiosyncrasies. Once you get used to them and figure out the tricks to make them work, you know where you are and what to expect. This applies to things like clothes, especially shoes, computers, various kinds of switches, pots and pans, and most of all to household appliances.
The washing machine that we had for the past fifteen years was a comfortable old thing. It had certain idiosyncrasies, and over the course of fifteen years of constant use it occasionally needed more serious attention. Like when it overflowed because the filter was blocked and the neighbor came up to tell us that water was dripping into the garage, because we had the bathroom door closed. After that we never closed the door completely when the washing machine was running, and the wall eventually dried out too. Then there was the time that the temperature regulator went out and I ended up boiling the boys snowsuits, which they found quite interesting. Many stray objects have been removed from that washing machine, which obviously do not belong in a washing machine, but on the whole it has been a relatively cooperative and hard-working member of this household all these years since we used to wash many loads of diapers.
The day before Patrick came home, we finally realized that the washing machine has been leaking for some time, and when we figured out that it wasn't a problem we could easily fix ourselves, we called the repairman. The repairman came early that Monday morning and started checking what needed to be repaired and how much it would cost. Before he finished that list it was clear that we would need a new washing machine. Patrick came home Monday night, the repairman brought the new washing machine Tuesday morning.
I took an instant dislike to the new washing machine. It had too many superfluous lights and an elaborate display of trivial information on a poisonously green lighted panel. And a very flimsy handle for the soap drawer. This washing machine was clearly not going to be with us for the next fifteen years.
It didn't even last a week. It was loud to start with, but it just got louder and louder when it went into the spin cycle, until it sounded like it was about to explode. We unanimously agreed that this could not be considered normal behavior, even on the part of a new washing machine, so we called the repairman again. The repairman discovered that the cement block inside it to stabilize the drum had come loose and was just being tossed around inside the metal case when the drum turned. The repairman wasn't left much opportunity to think about attempting to repair that, since a portion of the cement block had already been pulverized into cement dust on the floor underneath the washing machine.
So the repairman left again and came back the next day with another new washing machine. It looks exactly the same, and I still don't like it, but at least it has lasted longer than a week and did a reasonable job washing sweaters as well as the rest of the laundry. We'll see.
And then yesterday Peter came home with a new coffee machine to replace the one that broke months ago ...
posted by Aileen at Sunday, October 29, 2006
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